A thrill-seeking pensioner has raised £34,000 to help a Chelsea hospital buy lifesaving equipment, in memory of his late wife.

Harry Simler, 80, of Montpelier Place, Knightsbridge, decided to raise the money for Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in Fulham Road, when his wife Esther died in 1998, aged 72, after an X-ray failed to pick up lung cancer.

He set up the Esther Simler Cancer Appeal Providing Early Detection (ESCAPED) in recognition of her life and over the past 10 years, has raised money to help others suffering similar conditions, even strapping himself to the top of an aeroplane and performed an aerial wing-walk for sponsorship.

Mr Simler said: "I wanted to be sponsored for something, and it was either a wing-walk or a sky dive. My twin brother was a pilot, and I used to fly gliders, so I'm not at all scared of heights.

"Although, if I climb a ladder I might get dizzy, once I'm up in the clouds I'm fine. My son-in-law was on the ground watching while I swooped by."

The cash raised has been used to buy a fluorescence bronchoscope, a machine that allows doctors to detect lung problems earlier and save lives.

Respiratory consultant Dr Pallav Shah said: "On behalf of all the staff involved in diagnosing and treating patients with lung cancer at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, I would like to thank Harry his tireless fundraising in memory of his late wife. Lung cancer is the biggest cancer killer in the UK - a new person is diagnosed with the disease every 15 minutes in this country, and more than two thirds of lung cancers are diagnosed at a late stage, which means survival rates are lower."

An extra £5,000 to £6,000 remains in the fund, which Mr Simler hopes will help pay for a nurse to operate the machine.